I couldn’t help myself. The rack of primroses set outside of Fred Meyer was too pretty to resist. We’d just driven to Boise on ice packed roads. The day was grey and dismal, the clouds overhanging the city locked in a cold inversion and another possible storm was predicted. My house was still landscaped with several feet of snow. What was I thinking? It is still months until I see bare earth never mind plant anything.

Nevertheless, I bought a bright fuschia primrose for less than a dollar. It sits on my windowsill above the sink, receiving direct sunlight and brightens my kitchen. The leaves are dark green, ruffled like kale or spinach leaves, forming a large nest beneath the petals. I see  the golden eyes centered in each cluster of pink blooms contrasting the white snow outside like  a miniature painting.    Winter ice and spring flowers converge on the windowsill and I remember that this seemingly endless winter is already waning. Ice and snow are melting and the earth warms slowly with the longer days.

The primrose needs daily watering, but I forgot to do so for a few days. It began to droop and the flowers faded quickly. Oh, No, I thought. Better throw it out. But I gave it another chance, not really expecting it to come back. I soaked the pot, pulled off the dead blossoms and yellowing leaves. It revived almost immediately and is growing. In fact, beneath the top flower layer and tucked inside the leaves, tiny buds form. As the old blossoms die off, new ones pop out. The primrose in the plastic pot is a small blessing growing before my eyes.

I am thankful to God who makes ice and snow but who also promises us flowers, spring, a change of season and new growth. If there were 365 days of winter, we’d never see the beauty of a primrose. If there were nothing but unending sunny days, would we not yearn for cold?

Eccelesiastes tells us that “to everything there is a season and a time for every purpose under heaven. “ There is a time to water and plant and a season for things to die. My windowsill flower helps me to look forward to the next season which the Lord is bringing even as the former one fades and drop off. The watering will come from Him if we trust. He reveals the beauty and promise of the next season  for His Beloved in the Song of Solomon:

“My beloved spoke and said to me,

“Arise, my darling,

my beautiful one, come with me.

See! The winter is past;

the rains are over and gone.

Flowers appear on the earth;

the season of singing has come… “Song 2: 10-12

It is time. Prepare,  to sing  like  a flower!